1966 Chevy El Camino Body Repair & Hood Install - Uncovered

Part 1: Project Brutus Gets Prepped For Paint

There's no hiding the fact that paint and bodywork aren't cheap. In one form or another, it's going to cost you. Just take our '66 El Camino for example. Like most first buys, our Elco was a solid 20-footer and its history was questionable. It was only when we dropped it off at Rubio's Autobody in Sun Valley, California, that we realized the true condition of the body.

After the initial onceover, it was fairly obvious that the poor thing had already seen shoddy bodywork at some point of its life. The previous owner had filled the gaps, cracks, fist- and foot-sized holes that riddled the car with cardboard and body filler, truly signs of botched craftsmanship. It was then when owner Joe Rubio decided that in order to save time, new panels (where applicable) would be the most viable option to revive our bucket.

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To save time and money, we removed everything, including the bumpers, door handles, grille, headlight assembly, tail lamps, and every bit of trim.

While we hadn't planned on stripping the exterior to the metal, it was the correct way to fix our problem. And just when we thought it couldn't get any worse, we removed the rear window, known to be a common rot area on El Caminos, and it got worse.

This is the kind of bodywork we would never attempt on our own. However, Rubio has years of talent backing him and an extraordinary amount of experience building coachlike vehicles from the '30s on, '60s muscle cars, and even classic air-cooled exotics. "I'll take it to the frame if I have to," said Rubio while using what seemed like X-ray vision to investigate the remainder of the chassis.

To say that we were in the right place to get our vehicle back to prime Grade A condition would be an understatement. Rubio's Autobody took quick action and transformed our Elco from an almost painful-to-look-at state to a more recognizable muscle car that was ready for primer and paint. So break out a mask and sandpaper as we prepare this sled for paint.

Quick NotesWhat We DidStripped the Elco to a shell, fixed the rust, and added a new hood, fender, and patch panel from Original Parts Group.

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To save time and money, we removed everything, including the bumpers, door handles, grille, headlight assembly, tail lamps, and every bit of trim.

Diving in head-first, Arthur Rubio led the team on the El Camino's body surfaces. Using a combination of double-action and long-board sanders with 36- to 40-grit sandpaper, the team began to cut through the layers of orange paint to find fresh metal, only to uncover the ugly underneath.

Rubio's Autobody went ahead and scrapped the driver's side fender and the hood. Joe Rubio justified this and explained that it would be more expensive and take longer to fix the rust than it would be to purchase an all-new fender and hood from OPG.

Hidden HorrorsAs the Rubio's team dug deeper and deeper into the body, a host of hidden trouble-spots were uncovered. Thick layers of Bondo were stuffed into the rotted holes, and cardboard had been used as makeshift backing...

...Common problem areas are the bottoms of rear windows where water runs down each side and collects, eating away metal. These portions will have to be cut and replaced with fresh metal or whole new body panels from OPG.

Paying attention to detail, Marvin Ixqiac hand-sanded the taillight housing to perfection, working his way from 40- to 80-grit sandpaper. Using a combination of Eastwood's Rage Gold lightweight body filler and the original housing, he was careful to retain the natural body lines.

Fill It With EastwoodFor a majority of the El Camino's bodywork, we used Eastwood products, including Rage Gold Lightweight body filler (PN 12712ZP). This filler provides a unique ingredient (Hattonite) that reduces the heat and friction created by aggressive sanding. It also contains ZNX-7 for adhesion to galvanized steel and aluminum. Plus, it's stain resistant for use with basecoat/clearcoat paints, and the USC Blue cream hardener is included.

It's the small items that define a true body shop. Arthur Rubio noticed that the window track on the driver's side door had been repaired with a jagged hole, body filler, and a hose clamp. He dismantled the window track, cut the old hole out, and welded a new patch panel in place. He then filled the edges with Bondo and metal glaze and sanded the area to prepare it for primer.

Take it from us: Rust had worked its way into every crevice imaginable. The quarter-panel on the driver's side behind the rear wheel suffered the most. This sort of damage can't be filled. It must be removed. Roberto Bernal taped off the section and used an air-powered cutting wheel to remove the rotted metal.

Bernal measured and cut a new piece of sheetmetal from stock. Next, he began to stitch-weld the corners of the new metal into place. He followed along the sides until the new piece was welded in, leaving no gaps whatsoever. Lastly, he ground the welds smooth.

Before body filler can be laid onto the newly attached metal, fiberglass is first applied. The fiberglass has the same consistency as the body filler, requiring a catalyst to harden. Once dry, it can then be sanded to the desired results. After the fiberglass was sanded completely, the body filler was spread on top. Bernal then made sure to keep following the natural body lines.

Bernal removed the tailgate from the El Camino and set it up on a workbench to begin sanding. It was determined that the tailgate didn't suffer any rust, so Bernal could move on ahead and began to lay thin layers of Rage Gold filler to the panel. Working in a diagonal fashion, he started with 40-grit sandpaper and ended with 80-grit to eliminate any waves in the metal.

Our rear window was atrocious. The sides and bottom that supported the window had completely disintegrated. Fortunately, OPG has the lower portion available as a patch panel. Unfortunately, the sides would have to be hand-formed. Bernal separated the old portion away from the cab, cut the sides away from the bed, and replaced it with the OPG patch panel. He smoothed over the new welds with a grinder and applied filler to even everything out.

While the Elco wasn't quite ready for primer, the doors, tailgate, fender, and hood were. Arthur Rubio mixed up our Eastwood epoxy primer with the Eastwood 1:1 catalyst. This is a fast-drying application and is easy to sand two or three days after application. At just $17 each, the primer and catalyst are a steal.

Adjustable BlockEastwood also offers these long-board adjustable sanders that are designed to follow changes along the body contours. Full abrasive contact prevents "flat spotting." The 1075 tempered spring steel faceplate is embedded into the urethane foam body. Removing any or all of the three rods encased in the handle will adjust the flexibility of your sander. This can be used to maintain either flat or curved surface areas. Ixqiac used 80-grit sandpaper to finish off the passenger door.

For now, the Rubio's team set the primered panels aside and prepared the remainder of the El Camino's body for primer. All loose ends, such as body filler and additional sanding, were completed. Don't worry though. Part 2 is just around the corner. Next time we follow along as Rubio's finishes shooting the primer and sprays the shell with a matte black finish.

We give our 1973 Chevy Camaro a new look with a RS bumper and grille face lift. Also we swap out the home made cowl hood with a Harwood one. Only at www.chevyhiperformance.com, the official site for Chevy High Performance Magazine. » Read More